Chapter 18: The Most Important Thing Is to Keep Things Neat and Tidy

"Old Wu, just buy it! If we buy together, we can save a hundred yuan!"

In the retirement home, more than ten elderly people who intended to order coffins had transformed into Li Xian's salespeople, actively persuading those who found the price too high or who were reluctant to buy.

"I'm not buying. I'm in good health. What do I need a coffin for? No, no," an elderly man in the corner repeatedly waved his hand. "Besides, we're in the retirement home. Where would we put it if we bought it?"

"Put it in the backyard! We can have the retirement home clear out the space where the waste bricks are stored. It would be just right to place the coffins there."

When Old Wu heard this, he got angry. "Old Zheng, you've been a revolutionary. Think about it: putting a row of coffins behind a good retirement home, does that make any sense?"

Usually fond of bickering with Old Wu, Old Zheng was unusually warm and cheerful. "Old Wu, I have to criticize you here. Didn't you hear what the young fellow said earlier? When you reach a certain stage in life, you need to consider the issues of that stage. I'm almost seventy; what's wrong with preparing a coffin? It's not a matter of sense or nonsense. You're just not broad-minded enough."

Old Wu's arms, which had been crossed, dropped to his sides. "Is it really a matter of being broad-minded or not? Old Zheng, don't think I don't know what you're after. You just want to save that hundred yuan, right? Let me tell you, don't try to use lofty ideals on me. I'm not buying into it!"

"You stubborn old man," Old Zheng said, "I'll tell you. Old Liu, Old Xu, and Old Jin are all planning to buy. Now there are nineteen people ready to order, and we're just missing you. You're making everyone spend more money. Can you really justify that? You'd better think carefully. If you offend us, nobody will play chess or cards with you in the future."

Faced with Old Zheng's threat, Old Wu hesitated—losing his playing partners was a big deal.

But his stubborn nature made him unwilling to give in. "If you won't play with me, I'll go play with Little Ye!"

"Little Ye is about to be assigned to work at the bureau. Who will have time to take care of you then?"

Faced with Old Zheng's cunning, Old Wu's face turned red with anger. After a while, he finally hesitated and said, "Alright, I'll buy one."

Old Zheng laughed, "Buy! Five hundred yuan for a good resting place is totally worth it! We brothers are buying together, so it's neat and tidy, right? Come on, Old Wu, give me the money, and I'll put you on the list. When the young fellow comes, we'll finalize it together."

Old Wu reluctantly agreed, went back to his room, and pulled out the money from under his bed. He grumbled as he handed it over to Old Zheng.

Unexpectedly, Old Zheng took the money and ran to another room. "Old Liu, Old Jin, Old Xu, Old Wu has paid. Now we have seventeen people. We just need the three of you…"

...

When Li Xian and Li Pi finally returned to the retirement home, they saw more than twenty elderly people standing in front of the tricycle, eagerly waiting.

As soon as they saw Li Xian, they swarmed around him.

An elderly man with silver hair jumped in front of him and shoved a list into his hands. "Young man, take a look. There are twenty-three in total. We should get the group purchase price, right?"

Although Li Xian had anticipated some success, selling twenty-three coffins all at once was far beyond his expectations!

"Alright, alright! No problem, I'll give you the price of 500 yuan each!" Li Xian held the list, noting the densely written names, and was quite impressed.

Indeed, making money from the elderly was easy! He was beginning to understand why there were so many scammers targeting seniors with health products in later years—one sales event could make millions.

Their purchasing power was incredibly strong!

"But young man, we can't give you all the money. What if you take the money and run without any proof?"

Li Xian was holding the money, waiting to collect it, when the elderly man started to have doubts.

However, considering the elderly's concerns were reasonable, Li Xian pulled out his ID card and student ID. "Old sir, look here. You can keep these as collateral. I'll take them back when the first batch of coffins is delivered. How does that sound?"

At that time, the ID cards were similar to modern driver's licenses, made of plastic sheets. Li Xian's student ID from the forestry technical school was handwritten, but it had an official steel seal that couldn't be forged.

Seeing the documents, the elderly man was surprised. "Oh, I didn't realize you were a student from the forestry technical school?"

At that moment, an old man stepped out from the crowd—it was Little Ye's grandfather.

The old man took the student ID, first looking at the major, and after seeing the major, he scrutinized Li Xian again and said, "You're studying horticulture?"

Li Xian nodded.

When he saw the name on the student ID, the old man's brow furrowed deeply. "Your name is Li Xian?"

"Yes, that's right," Li Xian said, feeling a bit puzzled as the old man's expression changed—did he recognize him?

"Ah, I understand now."

The old man closed the student ID, and his previously plain face now seemed authoritative.

"The articles signed by Li Xian in the Workers' Report and the Forest Industry Report, and the walnut skins Little Ye bought from you. When I read the newspaper, I felt there was something suspicious about the articles being published one after the other. Now that it all connects, I understand. The walnut skin matter was a scheme you set up from beginning to end, right?"

Others might not know, but according to Li Xian's habit, he never paid attention to author names when reading newspapers. Even if he did, he wouldn't remember them.

The old man's memory and attention to detail surprised him.

He quickly explained, "The walnut skins actually have medicinal value. It's just that nobody paid attention to it before. I was just trying to bring it to light; it's not a scheme."

"Smooth talker!" The old man snorted, "You call that bringing it to light? You're inciting fear and then profiting from it! If this were twenty years ago, you'd be shot, and it wouldn't be too much!"

Hearing this, Li Xian was not flustered.

Facing the old man's sternness, he smiled and said, "Old sir, but this isn't twenty years ago, is it?"

The old man stared at Li Xian for a while before finally relaxing. "You young man, it's a waste for you to be studying horticulture."

The old man's sudden outburst had made the surrounding elderly people fall silent.

Seeing the awkwardness, Old Zheng finally spoke, "Alright, Old Wang, you've stepped down from the position. Don't fuss about it too much."

With that, he handed a thick envelope to Li Xian. "Young man, this is 5,750 yuan. We'll give you half now, and the rest will be paid when the coffins are delivered. Is that okay?"

Looking at the money, Li Xian beamed with joy. "No problem!"

After Old Zheng handed over the money, he couldn't help but imagine the future. "Wow, having more than twenty coffins in the retirement home will definitely be a unique sight in the forestry bureau."